What 2019 global trade trends should you be looking out for? Here’s a preview of what could be dominating the headlines and your work conversations throughout the next 12 months.

1. Will the new USMCA be ratified?

After over two years of anti-NAFTA rhetoric from President Trump and many rounds of negotiations, a replacement deal to govern North American trade, the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) was finally signed by the leaders of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico on November 30, 2018.

Before coming into effect, however, the deal must be ratified by the legislatures of all three countries. This step could be particularly challenging in the U.S., where a newly elected Democratic Congress may object to some aspects of the deal or simply be unwilling to give Trump a victory on the issue.

While the general sentiment is hopeful for a full ratification in 2019, a significant roadblock in any of the three countries could leave the issue open-ended for at least several more months.

2. Brexit is coming

With a March 29, 2019 date set for the UK to officially leave the EU, Theresa May’s government has little time left to gain domestic support for the Brexit deal she has negotiated. While a December vote was postponed due to a lack of support, May has survived a non-confidence vote and re-scheduled the Brexit vote for the week of January 14.

If a deal is not reached by the March 29 deadline, the UK will face a “hard Brexit” with no guidelines determining significant UK-EU issues like the Irish border, migration, travel, and trade. Despite UK government plans for this contingency, a no-deal Brexit could send the British economy spiralling downward with negative implications for the global economy as well.

3. Is your data safe?

As major corporate data breaches become increasingly common headlines, and the value of data seemingly increasing every day, companies face a conundrum: how can they gather the data they need, but also keep it safe?

Adding extra levels of online security and authentication for customers, as well as changing internal processes to improve passwords, store data more securely and eliminate potential security gaps may all need to be added to your 2019 to-dos to ensure a high level of trust between you and your customers, suppliers and partners.

4. Addressing gender inequality to improve economic opportunities

Despite a growing awareness and focus on the importance of women’s entrepreneurship, studies show that many challenges remain. According to a policy research paper published by the World Bank, the “gender gap in business ownership remains high in many economies around the world”, and “the gap in female entrepreneurship is especially apparent in low-income economies, where women are much less likely than men to start a new business.”

New research from PayPal Canada and Barraza and Associates also indicates that in Canada, “on average, women-owned businesses earn $68,000 less than men who run similar businesses.”

As issues like access to venture capital and corporate procurement opportunities continue to face women-run businesses, one area of success is in e-commerce businesses. 50% of new e-commerce businesses started in the last two years in Canada are run by women, compared to just 34% 10 years ago.

5. AI tools becoming increasingly commonplace

AI has several applications in international trade, from analyzing metrics and economic trends or optimizing warehouse and inventory management to linguistic translation and online sales or chat services, not to mention exporting AI tools themselves.

As technology is refined and these tools are more widely understood, questions regarding data security and IP protection are starting to come to the forefront. But for businesses willing to take the leap, AI has the potential to transform some of their business practices and give them a competitive advantage in their industry.

6. The CPTPP comes into effect – how could it affect you?

As of December 30, 2018, the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) comes into effect. This trade deal replaced the TPP after President Trump withdrew the U.S. from that agreement in January 2017 but still includes the other eleven countries from that deal: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

The agreement removes the vast majority of tariffs and other trade barriers, and enforces new standards for human rights and environmental and labour practices.

Will there be a noticeable increase in trade between businesses in these countries? And with opportunity for new countries to join the deal at a later date, could early successes entice any other countries to take steps towards entering the agreement?

7. The fading appeal of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies

A year ago, the potential for Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to serve as a transformative tool in global finance seemed high. Bitcoin’s value had never been higher, and increasing numbers of banks and other financial institutions were taking steps into the cryptocurrency arena.

What a difference a year can make.

After a December 2017 high of $20,000, Bitcoin is currently valued around $3,500. Other major cryptocurrencies are also valued at 85-90% below their all-time highs. Public excitement has turned to skepticism in some corners, or concerns about fraud and scams in others.

Even if values increase in 2019, significant changes will be needed to restore trust and support in cryptocurrencies before its wider acceptance in international trade can be re-considered.

8. Accelerated growth of service export industry should continue

Service exports can cover a multitude of areas: international customer service, financial, legal or consulting services, research and development, online services and platforms, and more.

In Euler Hermes’ 2019 forecast, they predict service exports to be the fastest-growing trade economic sector, with an estimated global growth of $365 billion USD, similar to 2018 growth levels.

As service export opportunities continue to grow in the world’s largest economies and emerging economies alike, businesses should look for ways to expand their service offerings through methods like servitization, or service exports directly connected to your existing product exports.

9. Personalizing is key to reach new customers or businesses

With the increasing numbers of ads, emails and content out there competing for attention, more businesses are trying to apply the personal touch in an effort to stand out.

From using increasing amounts of data to target specific ads to personalizing email offers and even web pages around user behaviour and interests, there are more ways than ever to make someone feel like your efforts were created just for them.

On the other side, businesses are increasingly turning back to old practices that had fallen by the wayside. Personal calls, direct mail and printed media like magazines or booklets are returning to the marketing playbook, as what was once cliché is now a novel or unique approach again.

10. Small businesses need employees ready to help grow and expand to new markets

According to a Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) survey, about 40% of small businesses are unable to find the right employees to grow. EDC also noted fewer Canadian businesses are newly exporting or planning to export to new markets in the near future.

To overcome these challenges, small businesses require employees able to research international markets, assess potential risks, create and implement market entry strategies and manage the international logistics, finance, marketing and sales, and other areas.

Looking for practical, flexible training to take your business into new international markets with confidence? Check the full list of EDC-FITT online courses and workshops to see which options work best for you.

We face an eventful year ahead, full of innovation, political risks, and important new opportunities for business growth.

What trends will you be most interested in throughout 2019?

The post 10 global trade trends we’ll be watching in 2019 appeared first on Trade Ready.

In today’s connected digital economy, many companies are born global from day one. The tremendous reach provided by the internet and related digital technologies represents a significant source of opportunities for businesses wishing to tap into new markets and grow globally.

With approximately 3.5 billion internet users worldwide in 2016, and with the global flow of goods and services expected to amount to upwards of $85 trillion by 2025, according to McKinsey, the potential for growth in the digital economy is enormous.

But this increasingly global digital reality, with its unprecedented access to customers across channels, platforms, and geographies, also brings with it a series of challenges for companies and marketers.

Changing consumer habits, behaviors, and expectations are shifting the way companies communicate their brand strategy, market to consumers, and engage with audiences around the world.

Forced to adapt to this new reality, marketers and companies alike are coming to recognize the importance of adopting a global mindset. And when launching global campaigns and building brand awareness worldwide, this means having to balance two imperatives: maintaining brand consistency globally and at the same time engaging with customers locally.

To do this, forward-thinking brands are moving beyond traditional localization and turning instead to transcreation.

One size fits all—or does it?

When developing a global campaign, the common approach is to design a single model that’s harmonized, universally appealing, and capable of scaling to reach a wider audience, both domestically and internationally. This helps to ensure that a consistent brand image, voice, and message are communicated to customers anywhere in the world.

But while this model has its advantages—consistency, coherency, less risks, and reduced costs, to name  a few—the reality is that the world isn’t homogeneous.

Delivering a one-size-fits-all solution that doesn’t speak directly to the local tastes and cultural differences of consumers can backfire.

In this case, a global mindset is a must. While consistency and universality are important, it’s equally important to address the cultural realities of the target locales. That’s where localization comes in. Localization is the process of adapting a product to the specific linguistic requirements, cultural sensitivities, preferences, values, and expectations of a target country or market. But while it can have a measurable impact on a company’s international business goals, sometimes localization doesn’t go far enough toward engaging the customer.

Moving beyond localization

We’ve all experienced it: a slogan that doesn’t sound quite right, a tagline that falls flat, an ad that just misses the mark. A brand’s identity is made up of various elements—rational and emotional, visual and textual, tangible and intangible—that come together to tell the unique story of your business. The more concrete the elements, the easier they are to communicate; the creative elements, however, can get lost in localization.

Although similar to localization, transcreation takes a creative approach to adaptation. Used primarily in marketing and advertising, it focuses on the concept of the campaign and on the intent of the message in order to provide cultural context and to recreate the nuances of its voice and tone.

So where localization focuses on communicating culturally appropriate messages, transcreation goes a step further:  it looks to creatively adapt the message to faithfully convey it in another language, for another culture, with the goal of maximizing cultural relevance and resonance.

Localization provides value, transcreation creates an experience

Beyond simply speaking to customers in their language, transcreation helps to ensure that you’re reaching them—you’re conveying the intended message and that it resonates with them. If your customers can relate to your message, it’s more likely to elicit an emotional response from them. This, in turn, shifts the needle from using localization to provide customer value to using transcreation to improve customer experience. And this helps to influence customer behavior.

Global marketing presents a challenging balancing act between brand consistency and customer engagement. Transcreation manages this by moving beyond traditional localization practices and adding the creative dimensions necessary to ensure your message resonates with your audience. While the message may differ for different communities, its voice and tone will be consistent, remaining faithful to the brand’s identity.

So, to sum up, if you’re thinking of reaching out to a global audience, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1 – Understand your customers – This goes without saying, but to effectively communicate your brand across the globe, you must understand the cultural values of your customers and respect their cultural needs. This means communicating with them in their own language, and in a way that’s culturally appropriate and relevant.

2 – Adapt your message to the market – As a global marketer, you want to scale their campaigns, but scaling globally at the expense of your local audience is a losing proposition. Maximize cultural relevance by adapting your campaign and core messaging so it resonates with local groups.

3 – Connect and engage – We all know how important it is to speak to customers in their language, but if your customers can’t relate to your message, then it’s a loss. To really connect and engage with them, you need to get personal. And to effectively take your brand from global to local, you need to transcreate.

The post Beyond localization: Why transcreation is essential for engaging the global audience appeared first on Trade Ready.